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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hand · key · field · squash · ball · coach · racket · race

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. squash — the sport
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. hand — help
  9. race — a contest
  10. key — for a lock
  11. hand — in cards
  12. field — for sport
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — humankind
  15. field — a subject
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. squash — to crush
  20. key — in music
  21. key — the most important part
  22. ball — a dance
  23. field — farmland
  24. coach — a trainer

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com